Dance as Yoga: The Spirit and Technique of Odissi

Dance as Yoga addresses the background, technique and embodiment of the odissi dance form. It describes odissi’s mechanism for creating, dispersing and expressing energy, as well as some early experiments in choreography that extended its accepted parameters with reference to Choreological Studies. It is meant for both performers and audiences to better appreciate the reasons for the restraints inherent in such dance forms and, by doing so, have an informed appreciation of innovation that builds on traditional strengths.

Dance as Yoga: The Spirit and Technique of Odissi describes Odissi’s mechanism for creating, dispersing and expressing energy, explores the principles of yoga in Indian dance and building a tangible artistic practice based on this understanding.  It is meant for performers, dance enthusiasts and general readers alike.

Rekha Tandon is a choreographer and researcher in odissi with an interdisciplinary background. She has a BA in architecture from the School of Planning and Architecture in New Delhi, an MA in History of Art from the National Museum in New Delhi, and a PhD in Dance Studies from Laban, London. She is the cofounder and Artistic Director of Danceroutes, now working at Skandavan beside Auroville, in Tamil Nadu, India.